Santos exit vote ahead

Daily Point

Will the GOP see long-term gain in short-term loss?

The House of Representatives returns from its Thanksgiving recess on Nov. 28 but the winner of this season’s political wishbone is yet to be determined.

The day after the House Ethics Committee released its damning report detailing a web of frauds perpetrated by CD3’s George Santos, its chairman, Michael Guest, introduced a new bill to expel him. When the chamber returns, it is likely that a member, perhaps Santos’ Nassau County neighbor, Anthony D’Esposito in CD4, will take to the floor to attach “privilege” to Guest’s motion, meaning that a vote must be taken in 48 hours.

For what it’s worth, Santos has said he will have a news conference on Thursday, Nov. 30 which dovetails with the two-day vote deadline.

For your dinner table conversation on Thursday, that leaves two questions to mull: Are two-thirds of the members who show up for the vote willing to take the extraordinary step of throwing an elected official out the door? And could Santos short-circuit the motion by making a plea deal? He is facing a 23-count federal indictment from the Department of Justice.

The first attempt earlier this month by NY GOP members to rid themselves of Santos failed, 179-213, with 19 members voting present. In that vote, only 24 Republicans voted to expel while 182 refused, as did 31 Democrats.

Sources on both sides of the aisle say the votes are coming together to expel after seeing the details of the committee investigation. If all Democrats support the motion, about 80 Republicans will be needed for passage, although it is uncertain whether all 11 GOP members from New York are onboard. The feeling among Republicans, who only have a four-vote margin, is that ethics committee chair Guest would not have filed the motion without a “wink and nod” from Speaker Mike Johnson. The argument made by New York Republicans is that it’s better to take the short-term risk of losing a vote for the long-term gain of keeping the majority in 2024.

CD1 Rep. Nick LaLota said the argument taking hold is that the House GOP can’t make a credible argument to hold President Joe Biden and members of his administration accountable with Santos running around. “Voters will take us more seriously when our own house is clean,” he told The Point.

As for Santos’ short-circuiting the process, the sense is that he has run out of time to use his resignation from the House as a bargaining chip in a deal to get a reduced sentence. “The vote is going to happen, there is no willingness to give him any more deference,” said one GOP source.

Cracking a wishbone to get the longer piece is all about lucky breaks; next week we may find out whether Santos has any left.

— Rita Ciolli rita.ciolli@newsday.com

Pencil Point

Democratic unity

For more cartoons, visit www.newsday.com/nationalcartoons

Final Point

Fore! Island Hills committee report coming soon

The Island Hills Advisory Committee — a group of residents tasked with gathering feedback about plans for the 114-acre Sayville golf course property — is nearing the end of its work and preparing to issue a report on its findings, sources told The Point.

Rechler Equity Partners’ initial proposal to build 1,365 apartments at Island Hills went up in flames in 2021. Earlier this year, developers Gregg and Mitchell Rechler began discussing revisions to the plans for the site and formed the advisory committee to assist in that process. The committee — Good Samaritan Hospital spokesman Justin Jaycon, political consultant Mike Dawidziak, Sayville resident Tim Dolan, former Suffolk County News owner Mary Lou Cohalan, and restaurant manager Fred Welge — has been meeting with a variety of stakeholders over the last few months, including small business owners, area residents and members of the civic association opposed to the plan.

Those meetings are winding down, sources said, and the committee is expected to provide the developer with a report by the end of the year. It’s expected that the developer will use that report in formulating any revised plans for construction on the property.

Islip Town Supervisor Angie Carpenter told The Point she is looking forward to seeing the committee’s findings.

“I thought this exercise they were putting together, and the effort to hold meetings, was a good one,” Carpenter said. “I’m anxious to see what they came up with. I’m curious to see it.”

Carpenter noted that while the town rejected the first plan after widespread opposition, she’d be interested in a revised proposal, especially if the developer took the community’s ideas into consideration.

“I pledge to work with the community to come up with a product at the end of the day that the community is comfortable with,” Carpenter said.

— Randi F. Marshall randi.marshall@newsday.com

Programming Point

The Point will be back on Monday, Nov. 27. Happy Thanksgiving!

Subscribe to The Point here and browse past editions of The Point here.